How to solve crossword puzzles: a beginner’s guide

Last updated October 1, 2026

A crossword is a word puzzle built from clues. Each clue describes a word, and you write the word into a row or column of squares. Every square at a crossing belongs to two words, so each answer you find gives you letters for others. This guide explains the kinds of clue you will meet, where to start, and how to use crossing letters, using a tiny grid you can follow with a finger. To try one, today’s free Easy Crossword is a small 5 by 5.

How the grid works

White squares hold letters and black squares divide the words. A number in the corner of a square marks where a word begins. Words that run left to right are Across and words that run top to bottom are Down, and each has its own list of clues. The number after a clue, or the number of squares in the row, tells you how many letters the answer has. Counting the squares is your most useful check.

The kinds of clue

• A definition. “Fruit dessert with a crust” (3 letters) is PIE. Most clues work like a dictionary entry, and the length picks the right word: “Large body of water” could be SEA or OCEAN.
• A fill-in-the-blank. “A stitch in ___ saves nine” is TIME. These are often the easiest, and the Proverbs and Idioms crosswords have many.
• A plural. A clue in the plural has an answer in the plural, which usually ends in S. “Garden tools” points to something like RAKES.
• A tense. The answer matches the clue’s tense. “Walked” has an answer ending in ED, and “walking” has one ending in ING.
• An abbreviation. “Doctor, for short” is DOC. The words “for short” or “abbr.” mean the answer is a shortened form.

Every clue here is written for this site in plain everyday English. In newspaper crosswords a question mark at the end of a clue can signal wordplay, but you will not meet those tricks on this site.

Step 1: start with the short, sure answers

Read through the clues and fill in the ones you are certain of. Fill-in-the-blank clues and three-letter answers are good places to begin. Do not worry about the hard clues yet. Every letter you place makes the clues around it easier.

Step 2: use the crossing letters

These are the clues for the little grid above:

• Across: 1. Fruit dessert with a crust (3). 4. A long stretch of history (3). 5. To be or ___ to be (3).
• Down: 1. A writing tool filled with ink (3). 2. Used to press shirts (4). 3. Have a meal (3).

We start with 1 Across, PIE. Its letters now begin three Down answers. The Down word that starts with I and means “used to press shirts” has four letters: IRON. The one that starts with P and is a writing tool with three letters is PEN. The one that starts with E and means “have a meal” is EAT.

Now the rest follow from the crossings. Row 2 begins with E (from PEN) and has R in the middle (from IRON), so the answer to 4 Across, “a long stretch of history”, is ERA. Row 3 begins with N and has O in the middle, so 5 Across, “to be or ___ to be”, is NOT. Each answer was found by a clue and checked by the letters that crossed it.

Using this site’s tools

• Tap a square to start a word, and tap the same square again to switch between Across and Down.
• The clue you are working on is always shown at the top in large type. Press Read clue to hear it, with its number and how many letters it has. The arrow buttons step to the next or previous clue.
• Press Hint once to mark a square that needs attention, and again to fill in its letter. Hints only change the stars you earn, never your time.
• With Auto-Check on, a wrong letter is marked at once with a dashed border and a line through it. Switch it off if you would rather check when you are ready.

When you are stuck

• Move to a different part of the grid. Answers elsewhere may give you the crossing letters you need.
• Say the clue aloud, or press Read clue. Hearing it often brings a different meaning to mind.
• Check the length and the tense. A word that fits the meaning but not the length is not the answer.
• Try the clue with any letters you already have, and say what the missing ones could be.

Common mistakes

• Forgetting plurals and tenses, so that a good answer does not fit the squares.
• Leaving a wrong letter in place. Every crossing word it touches will seem impossible. If two words both look wrong, check the letter they share.
• Giving up on a clue that is simply waiting for a crossing letter.

The free Crossword each day is an Easy 5 by 5. Medium is 7 by 7 and Hard is 9 by 9. Browse all the large print crossword puzzles and their five themes.

Prefer paper? free large print crossword printables are ready to print.

More guides

Keep going with how to solve Sudoku, how to solve a cryptogram, and word search tips. Or browse all the puzzle guides.